More than a year ahead of schedule, crews in Mississippi continue making progress on a historic project in Rankin County. SR 477 construction includes building a four-lane highway between U.S. 80 in Pearl and SR 468 in Flowood.

"Both communities and surrounding areas have experienced quite a boom in recent decades, putting lots of traffic on U.S. 80 and Lakeland Drive [SR 25], along with surrounding roadways," said Mike Flood, MDOT public information officer. "This connector road will give drivers another route to travel, easing congestion and increasing safety and efficiency throughout Rankin County."

MDOT photo

Flood noted the $60 million effort began as a Local Public Agency (LPA) project years ago.

"MDOT's involvement at that time was helping administer necessary federal funds towards the local project. Later, dispersive soil was found throughout the project, forcing crews to go back and perform more dirt work, changing the overall scope of work.

"That contract was terminated, which allowed MDOT to re-bid a different contract that included repairs to the roadbed and ultimately move forward to the paving phase and eventually open SR 477 for travel."

SR 477 from U.S. 80 to SR 468 work involves milling and overlaying existing pavement and repairing underlying concrete. Crews also must seal joints and cracks and upgrade guardrails.

Work began in late summer 2024. The original completion date was spring 2027; however, the job could wrap up as early as spring 2026.

Eutaw Construction Company Inc. of Madison, Miss., serves as the contractor on the project.

"Eutaw has proven to be a strong partner with us over the years, including the massive Greenville Bypass project in Washington County," said Flood. "They excel when it comes to moving large volumes of earth work in a timely manner and working with us when challenges arise. The fact that they are already significantly ahead of schedule shows how great a contractor Eutaw is, and it's always a pleasure taking on massive construction projects with them."

According to Stephen Burdine, Eutaw senior project manager, crews are moving full speed ahead.

"Construction is going extremely well right now, despite fighting the unpredictable weather. We faced many challenges trying to keep our operations performing at high levels to counteract adverse delays.

"During the first three months of the project, the weather remained dry, which allowed us to accelerate the project schedule and enter the winter months ahead of schedule. When earthmoving operations resumed after winter, we pushed to complete the remaining earthwork during a wet spring, which we ultimately overcame."

MDOT photo

Earthwork operations are now complete, and asphalt paving is under way. Subcontractor APAC-Mississippi placed the first asphalt lift on the new four-lane state route.

Drainage installation was a key activity to stay ahead of earthwork operations. Soil stabilization also has been completed. Excess excavation, mainline borrow and subbase material hauling are finished as well, along with subgrade/subbase stabilization and all storm drainpipe and drainage structures. The focus of the schedule going forward will be the asphalt placement, followed by concrete flatwork.

Burdine explained that grading operations have gone extremely well, due to the collaboration between Eutaw Construction and MDOT. Grading work included excess excavation (646,000 cu. yds.) and borrow excavation (630,000 cu. yds.) that took place from September 2024 to May 2025.

"At any given time during grading operations, Eutaw employed up to 150 haul units, including scraper tractors, off-road trucks and on-road trucks to move 1.28 million cubic yards of material in only 74 days. There is no room for error at this pace, and Eutaw utilized GPS-equipped equipment to ensure all work was performed with minimal grade issues."

Burdine said erosion control compliance is a major element in any construction project, and Eutaw recognizes the crucial role it plays.

"Weekly inspections and collaboration amongst the project team have been critical in ensuring the project remains compliant and environmental impacts are kept to a minimum."

Eutaw Construction photo

Heavy equipment on the project has included Komatsu dozers and excavators (Lyle Equipment); John Deere scraper tractors (MS AG); and Mack dump trucks (Tri-State Truck Center). All the "heavy yellow" and scraper tractor fleet used Topcon GPS technology. Main materials required include borrow materials, subbase materials and limestone aggregates.

"As a contractor that performs this type of work, this is a project our team looks forward to building," said Burdine. "We approach each project with a team mentality, with the goal of providing a safe workplace for each of our employee-owners to construct a project that owners and/or taxpayers can enjoy. We have had the pleasure of working with an excellent MDOT team, and we hope the community and traveling public will enjoy the new state route."

Flood added, "It's extremely satisfying to work on a project that will serve drivers for years to come. I have lots of friends and family who live in Rankin County, so I know how major the impact this project will have on improving traffic flow throughout such a busy area." CEG